Area codes 410, 443, and 667
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Area codes 410, 443, and 667 are telephone
History
In 1947, the
The number shortage problem was exacerbated by the use of area code 202 as a de facto overlay for the inner ring of the Washington metro area, even though it was split between three area codes–301, 202, and
The office code protection ended in 1990, but it soon became apparent that this would not free up enough prefixes to meet demand. By the fall of 1990, it was apparent that Maryland needed another area code. In November 1990, a plan for a second area code, 410, was announced, that would be assigned to the Baltimore metropolitan area and the Eastern Shore, while western and southern Maryland, including the Washington suburbs, would retain area code 301.
Area code 410 officially entered service on October 6, 1991; it was initially implemented in a permissive-dialing phase, with ten-digit dialing for local calls across the new 301/410 boundary. The split largely followed metro lines. However, slivers of Anne Arundel and Carroll counties, as well as much of western Howard County, stayed in 301 even though these counties reckoned as part of the Baltimore area. Conversely, slivers of Frederick County, a Washington exurb, switched to 410.[3][a] Effective November 1, 1991, ten-digit dialing was required when calling a different area code in Maryland.[4]
Although the split was intended to be a long-term solution, within five years 410 was already close to exhaustion due to the proliferation of
By 2011, the 410/443 area was once again running out of numbers because of the continued proliferation of cell phones. To spare residents another number change to a new area code, a third overlay code, area code 667, was implemented on March 24, 2012.[5] This had the effect of assigning 24 million numbers to just over four million people. Based on current projections, a fourth area code will not be required in the region until about 2030.[6]
Coverage
The counties served by these area codes include:
In the Baltimore metropolitan area:
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All of Maryland's Eastern Shore:
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Notes
- ^ a b c Four counties were split between area code 301 and 410.
- Anne Arundel County was assigned area code 410, except Laurel exchanges 210, 317, 490, 497, 498, 596, 604, 725, and 778, Marlboro exchange 952, and Fort Meade exchange 677.
- Carroll County was assigned area code 410, except Mount Airy exchange 829 remained area code 301.
- Howard County was assigned area code 410, except Mount Airy exchange 829 and Laurel exchanges 210, 317, 490, 497, 598, 604, 725, and 776 remained area code 301.
- Frederick County remained area code 301, except Union Bridge exchange 775 and New Windsor exchange 635 was assigned 410.[3]
References
- ^ Mabbs, Ralph (Winter 1947–1948). "Nation-Wide Operator Toll Dialing—the Coming Way". Bell Telephone Magazine. 26 (4): 181. Retrieved July 20, 2023.
- ^ "New area code coming". The Baltimore Sun. November 21, 1990. p. E6.
- ^ a b "New area code for eastern Maryland". The Baltimore Sun. November 1, 1991. p. 1A.
- ^ "Now Area Codes Count in Md." The Washington Post. November 2, 1992. p. B9.
- ^ Fazeli Fard, Maggie (October 12, 2011). "Maryland's new 667 area code goes into effect in 2012". The Washington Post. Retrieved July 23, 2012.
- ^ "2022-1 NRUF and NPA Exhaust Analysis" (PDF). nationalnanpa.com. April 2022. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 9, 2022. Retrieved November 30, 2022.
External links
- NANPA area code map of Maryland
- List of cities covered and exchanges from Area-Codes.com, 410 Area Code
- List of cities covered and exchanges from Area-Codes.com, 443 Area Code
North: 717/223, 484/610/835
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West: 301/240
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410/443/667 | East: 302, Atlantic Ocean |
South: 757/948 | ||
Delaware area codes: 302 | ||